Friday, November 7, 1997
Speaks Out
PRIVITIZATION: Sunset Commons was recently renamed Covel Commons
in honor of a private donor, a move that has raised concerns about
UCLA becoming increasingly reliant on private donations. Do you
think that private donations benefit the university?
Jory Chavez
Third-year
English and political science
"I don’t think it’s good because those people could try to
influence the university. If they’re politically oriented, they
might get the school to go for or against something like Prop. 209.
UCLA could become biased against something because of a person
that’s giving these donations."
Danielle Dellner
Third-year
Anthropology
"If it’s going to help students’ education and keep costs down,
that’s our priority as a public university. Even if they are
private donations, I could really care less whose name is on the
building if it’s going to help students."
Michallene Hooper
Second-year
Undeclared student
"I favor state funding because with private funding, that brings
in a whole bunch of favoritism. Remember we had that problem with
people being let in because they paid? I think it would affect
admissions."
Charles Hung
First-year
Computer science
"I think it’s good that people are giving money to the school
because even though it’s a public institution, people who have
graduated feel pride and still want to improve it. If you want to
build a reputation for the school, even after you graduate, you
have to keep supporting it.
Danny Tappan
Second-year
Business and economics
"I think it’s a good thing that you get money from other
sources, not just the state, because state funding gets cut. It’s a
good thing because if you change the name of a few buildings, it’s
not really going to make a difference. These people are donating
money, and it’s not out of the question for the school to show it’s
appreciation."
Mihaela Ursic
First-year
Undeclared
"I think that it should be able to get money from private
ownerships because if it needs money, it should get it in any way
possible. I don’t think it should be limited to state funds.